


According to Cormac McLaggen

by 26EdithFinn



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Muggle AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-16
Updated: 2019-09-16
Packaged: 2020-10-19 18:17:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,464
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20661617
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/26EdithFinn/pseuds/26EdithFinn
Summary: “Well tonight I felt just like I did when we were going out. I was out of it, looking for excuses for it to end, bitting my tongue so I wouldn’t talk back… I was uncomfortable.”Harry looked at her finally. He looked confused and a bit amused, and paused his game. “Was it really that bad? With Ron I mean.”Hermione sighed, “No. I mean, it didn’t start out that way. When we started, I was so excited to be with him, you know? It was easy to overlook all the comments and the jabs. It was easy to make excuses for him to my friends. But as time went on, I started to notice it more.”





	According to Cormac McLaggen

**Author's Note:**

> Just a small one shot. A sort of personal essay really. It's based on actual events, and I wanted to write about it somehow. Get it out of my system so I can continue with my other work(s)

The evening had started out well enough. She had gotten out of work on time for once, her coworker arriving early for her shift, so Hermione hadn’t had to wait for her. She took a long hot shower as soon as she got home, wiping away the sandwich smell that seemed seep into her pores.

Hermione had been looking for a new job for a week now while at the same time looking into Phlebotomy externships. She had gotten her license a month ago, might as well get some use out of it. Yet finding externships that worked with her schedule was harder than she had originally thought.

She got out with plenty of time to get ready for her date. Well no, not a date. Cormac hadn’t exactly asked her to a date, they had just made planes to meet at the festival. Hermione hadn’t thought of it as a date honestly. Yes, she knew Cormac was interested, and yes she would admit to being slightly curious, but noting beyond that. Hermione wasn’t attracted to him. Not completely. Hermione wasn’t blind, she could see what others found appealing about Cormac. It just didn’t work for her.

So they were just meeting up as friends. Just that. Nothing more. That was until Cormac kissed her.

It had been so long since Hermione had been kissed, she just went with it. She pulled him close, played with his tongue, and tried to enjoy the kiss at an awkward angle.

Things went downhill from here. He kept touching her, kept playing with her shorts, kept caressing her face. It was obvious he thought he was flirting, that he believed himself to be so smooth and cool towards her. But Cormac was not smooth, not in the slightest. All his comments sounded like insults, all his complements ringing hollow and vague.

Hermione said all the wrong things, according to Cormac. She was awkward and inexperienced. Her eyebrows were too big and her hair all over the place. Cormac said she wasn’t the most boring person in the world, but she caught him hiding a yawn.

And somehow, the conversation shifted to sex, and how Hermione wasn’t a whore like the other girls Cormac had been with. It was supposed to be a compliment, Hermione knew. Yet it left a foul taste in her mouth. Cormac kept offering to take her back to his place, that his mother wouldn’t mind at all if she stayed the might. He kept joking about fucking her in his car.

He kept asking if this were a date or not. Cormac informed her that there was another girl he was talking to, and that it was a race between the both of them. Hermione should feel honored. She asked him if he even knew what he wanted the day to be, which he answered he didn’t actually know. She asked him why he didn’t just asked her on a date, to which he said it was too much pressure.

And now they were here, with Hermione sitting in the front seat of Cormac’s car, getting ready to dash out as soon as he stopped.

“I had fun tonight. I feel like I learned a lot about you.”

“Yeah. Right.” Hermione’s hand was on the door handle, waiting for him to unlock the door.

“We should do it again sometime. Hang out I mean. Maybe next time you could come to my house.”

“We'll see about that.” Like she’d ever be in a room with him.

“Well, goodnight Hermione.” He unlocked the door.

She pushed herself out of that car as fast as she could, “Good night Cormac. Drive safe.”

She was sitting on the couch with Harry when it hit her.

“Cormac is just like Ron, you know?”

“What do you mean?”, he asked not even looking up from his game. He was concentrated on some shooter game he had had for over a year, but had yet to beat.

“Not the ‘best friend’ version of Ron. The ‘boyfriend’ version. The awkward, slightly insensitive version or Ron.”

“You think so?”, Harry still didn’t put down his game.

“Well tonight I felt just like I did when we were going out. I was out of it, looking for excuses for it to end, bitting my tongue so I wouldn’t talk back… I was uncomfortable.”

Harry looked at her finally. He looked confused and a bit amused, and paused his game. “Was it really that bad? With Ron I mean.”

Hermione sighed, “No. I mean, it didn’t start out that way. When we started, I was so excited to be with him, you know? It was easy to overlook all the comments and the jabs. It was easy to make excuses for him to my friends. But as time went on, I started to notice it more.”

“Notice what?”, Harry asked. He turned towards her, putting the controller down and giving her his full attention.

“That he always made me fell bad, one way or another. If it wasn’t my appearance, it was my comments, or my grades, or how I acted in front of his parents. He made me doubt myself, made me question my worth -“

“I’m sure he didn’t mean to -“

“That doesn’t make it okay. I know he didn’t mean to, I know he didn’t think his comments affected me the way they did. That doesn’t make it right though. That doesn’t give him a pass.”

“Did you try talking to him about it?”

“Of course I did Harry. I tried to talk to him about ‘us’ a million times. He just… didn’t seem to get the message.”

They sat in silence for a while. Harry thinking on what Hermione had said, she comparing her relationship with Ron to her other relationships. To the man that had treated her like a queen.

“So you’re not going to see Cormac again?”

“No, I don’t think so. I’ll still talk to him, I’ll be civil. But it’s never going to go further than that.”

Harry chuckled, “Thats what you said last time.” He turned back to his game.

Hermione couldn’t help the smile that came to her face.

She was about to leave work when he walked in. She hadn’t seen him in a long time. Not since they had broken up. Since he moved to Spain. God that had been almost three years ago.

When they locked eyes, it was the most cliche thing ever. Time stood still, and she was sixteen again. Her heart was racing, her face heating up. It was like seeing him for the first time all over again, complete with the raging bats in he throat and her dry mouth. When he smiled at her, Hermione was suddenly aware that her hair was in a messy bun, that her clothes were stained with flour, and that she smelled like a day old sandwich. And still, Draco Malfoy kept walking towards her, his smile getting wider and brighter.

“Granger? It’s been three years, I can’t believe you still work here.”

“Yes, well, I’ve been a little too busy to look for another job.”

He smirked, “I bet. You working at a hospital yet?”

She frowned, “Well I had a few setbacks. I’m actually just finishing my general, getting ready to transfer to the nursing program.”

Draco frowned, “Oh.” There was a pause, and then he smiled at her, “Well, you’ll be the most experienced of your class that’s for sure.”

And just like that, Hermione’s anxiety and insecurity melted away. It was always like this with Draco. He always knew the right thing to say. How to make her feel better. How to make her feel stronger.

“What are you doing here anyway?”, she asked after swallowing a few times.

“I finished exchange program. Told you I’d be back to finish my Bachelor’s. Probably’ll end up staying to finish my Master’s.”

Hermione’s blush was back, although it never really went away. Draco was looking at her a bit shyly, like he didn’t know where to go from here. Hermione didn’t know either.

Hermione took a deep breath, “My shift is over. I don’t have anything planned. Want to grab lunch? I would love to catch up.”

There was a pause. It was only a moment, but to Hermione it felt like an eternity. She was just about to bow out, when Draco gave her a crooked grin. The one that said he was excited and relived, even if he didn’t jump for joy.

“I would love that, actually.”

She couldn’t resist, “Even if I smell like day old sandwich?”

He gave a small laugh, “Granger, I’ll take you anyway I can get you at this point.”

Hermione could’ve died in that moment. She wasn’t entirely sure she hadn’t.

**Author's Note:**

> So that's that! I hope you all enjoyed it, I would love to hear what you all thought of it.
> 
> And never fear, for an update on "Check" is near! (This Friday)


End file.
